WEBVTT 00:00.000 --> 00:10.480 You can roughly locate any community in the world, somewhere along a scale running all 00:10.480 --> 00:18.040 the way from democracy to despotism. One at the democracy end, another somewhere in the 00:18.040 --> 00:27.160 middle, and a third... Let's find out about despotism. This man makes it his job to study 00:27.160 --> 00:34.400 these things. Well, for one thing, avoid the comfortable idea that the mere form of government 00:34.400 --> 00:42.400 can of itself safeguard a nation against despotism. Germany, under President Hindenburg, was a 00:42.400 --> 00:51.320 republic, and yet in this republic an aggressive despotism took root and flourished under Adolf 00:51.320 --> 00:58.320 Hitler. When a competent observer looks for signs of despotism in a community, he looks 00:58.320 --> 01:08.040 beyond fine words and noble phrases. One nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for 01:08.040 --> 01:18.320 all. Many observers have found that two workable yardsticks help in discovering how near a community 01:18.320 --> 01:28.280 is to despotism, the respect scale and the power scale. A careful observer can use a 01:28.280 --> 01:35.200 respect scale to find how many citizens get an even break. As a community moves towards 01:35.200 --> 01:45.640 despotism, respect is restricted to fewer people. A community is low on a respect scale 01:45.640 --> 01:50.760 if common courtesy is withheld from large groups of people on account of their political 01:50.760 --> 01:58.560 attitudes. If people are rude to others because they think their wealth and position gives 01:58.560 --> 02:11.200 them that right, or because they don't like a man's race or his religion. Equal opportunity 02:11.200 --> 02:17.120 for all citizens to develop useful skills is one basis for rating a community on a respect 02:17.120 --> 02:25.400 scale. The opportunity to develop useful skills is important, but not enough. The equally 02:25.400 --> 02:38.240 important opportunity to put skills to use is a further test on a respect scale. A power 02:38.240 --> 02:44.320 scale is another important yardstick of despotism. It gauges the citizens' share in making the 02:44.320 --> 02:50.520 community's decisions. Communities which concentrate decision making in a few hands 02:50.520 --> 02:56.840 rate low on a power scale and are moving towards despotism. Like France under the Bourbon 02:56.840 --> 03:06.520 Kings, one of whom said, the state, I am the state. Today, democracy can ebb away in communities 03:06.520 --> 03:15.840 whose citizens allow power to become concentrated in the hands of bosses. What I say goes, see, 03:15.840 --> 03:26.200 I'm the law around here. The test of despotic power is that it can disregard the will of 03:26.200 --> 03:37.320 the people. It rules without the consent of the governed. Look beyond the legal formalities 03:37.320 --> 03:43.080 of an election in measuring a community on the power scale to see if the ballot is really 03:43.080 --> 03:53.240 free. If the citizens can vote only the way they're told, a community approaches despotism. 03:53.240 --> 04:03.440 When legislatures become ceremonial assemblies only and have no real control over lawmaking, 04:03.440 --> 04:16.240 their community rates low on a power scale. In a downright despotism, opposition is dangerous 04:16.240 --> 04:27.920 whether the despotism is official or whether it is unofficial. The spread of respect and 04:27.920 --> 04:34.280 power in a community is influenced by certain conditions which many observers measure by 04:34.280 --> 04:42.120 means of the economic distribution and information scales. If a community's economic distribution 04:42.120 --> 04:47.800 becomes slanted, its middle income groups grow smaller and despotism stands a better 04:47.800 --> 04:59.640 chance to gain a foothold. Where land is privately owned, one sign of a poorly balanced economy 04:59.640 --> 05:07.740 is the concentration of land ownership in the hands of a very small number of people. 05:07.740 --> 05:14.880 When farmers lose their farms, they lose their independence. This one can stay on but not 05:14.880 --> 05:22.200 as his own boss anymore. To the extent that this condition exists throughout a nation, 05:22.200 --> 05:28.960 the likelihood of despotism is increased. In communities which depend almost entirely 05:28.960 --> 05:35.320 on a single industry such as a factory or mine, maintaining economic balance is a challenging 05:35.320 --> 05:46.320 problem. If this condition exists over the nation as a whole, so that the control of 05:46.320 --> 05:57.580 jobs and business opportunities is in a few hands, despotism stands a good chance. Another 05:57.580 --> 06:03.800 sign of a poorly balanced economy is a taxation system that presses heaviest on those least 06:03.800 --> 06:12.060 able to pay. A larger part of a small income is spent on necessities such as food. Sales 06:12.060 --> 06:22.440 taxes on such necessities hit the small income harder. In the days of the salt tax, feudal 06:22.440 --> 06:34.240 despotisms were partly sustained by this and other effects. A community rates low on an 06:34.240 --> 06:41.060 information scale when the press, radio, and other channels of communication are controlled 06:41.060 --> 06:48.440 by only a few people and when citizens have to accept what they are told. In communities 06:48.440 --> 07:00.240 of this kind, despotism stands a good chance. See how community trains its teachers. Bear 07:00.240 --> 07:06.840 this in mind. Young people cannot be trusted to form their own opinions. This business 07:06.840 --> 07:13.320 about open mindedness is nonsense. It's a waste of time trying to teach students to 07:13.320 --> 07:22.640 think for themselves. It's our job to tell them. And when teachers put such training 07:22.640 --> 07:28.720 into practice, despotism stands a good chance. These children are being taught to accept 07:28.720 --> 07:36.920 uncritically whatever they are told. Questions are not encouraged. How can you ask such a 07:36.920 --> 07:44.240 question? Have you got a textbook? Yes ma'am. Does it say here that our law courts are always 07:44.240 --> 07:53.760 just? Yes ma'am. Then how dare you question the fact. Sit down. And so we aren't surprised 07:53.760 --> 08:02.240 when. But it must be true. I saw it in this book right here. And if books and newspapers 08:02.240 --> 08:08.560 and the radio are efficiently controlled, the people will read and accept exactly what 08:08.560 --> 08:16.520 the few in control want them to. Government censorship is one form of control. A newspaper 08:16.520 --> 08:23.400 which breaks a government censorship rule can be suspended. It is also possible for 08:23.400 --> 08:31.720 newspapers and other forms of communication to be controlled by private interests. I thought 08:31.720 --> 08:35.960 I told you to kill that story. It'll cost us a lot of advertising. If that story goes 08:35.960 --> 08:47.120 out, I quit. All right. What sort of community do you live in? Where would you place it on 08:47.120 --> 08:54.640 a democracy despotism scale? To find out, you can rate it on a respect scale and a power 08:54.640 --> 09:02.800 scale. And to find out what way it is likely to go in the future, you can rate it on economic 09:02.800 --> 09:10.820 distribution and information scales. The lower your community rates on economic distribution 09:10.820 --> 09:19.120 and information scales, the lower it is likely to rate on respect and power scales, and thus 09:19.120 --> 09:33.840 to approach despotism. What happens in a single community is the problem of its own citizens. 09:33.840 --> 09:56.080 But it is also the problem of us all, because as communities go, so goes the nation.